2013 Stanley Cup Finals
The 2013 Stanley Cup Finals was the championship series of the 2012–13 NHL season and the conclusion of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs. This was the 120th year of the Stanley Cup's presentation. The Western Conference playoff champions Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Eastern Conference playoff champions Boston Bruins in six games to win their fifth Stanley Cup in team history. The Blackhawks also became just the eighth team to win both the Cup and the Presidents' Trophy (as the team with the best regular season record) in the same season. Chicago's Patrick Kane was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Most Valuable Player of the playoffs. Due to a lockout that both shortened and delayed the start of the regular season, the 2013 Cup Finals began on June 12th and lasted until June 24th. This was the first Stanley Cup Finals series between two Original Six teams since and the seventh since its first expansion in 1967. It also marked the first time these two teams have met in the Stanley Cup Finals. In Game 6 of the finals, trailing the Boston Bruins 2–1 with 76 seconds left in the third period, the Blackhawks scored two goals in 17 seconds to win the series 4–2. The win was the Blackhawks' second in four years, after also claiming the title in 2010. It was also the first Stanley Cup Final since to feature three overtime games, including the fifth longest game in Finals history. Road to the Finals 'Boston Bruins' This was the Boston Bruins's nineteenth appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals, and they sought their seventh Cup championship overall and their first one since 2011 when they also faced the Presidents Trophy winners, the Vancouver Canucks. The Bruins entered the season without the services of goalie Tim Thomas, the Conn Smythe Trophy winner during Boston's 2011 championship. It was announced in June 3, 2012, that he planned on taking a year off from hockey. Thomas was eventually traded to the New York Islanders on February 7, 2013. Tuukka Rask succeeded Thomas as the starting goalie for the Bruins. Another of the Bruins' major off-season trades was sending Benoit Pouliot to the Tampa Bay Lightning. On April 2, 2013, with about a month left in the lockout-shortened regular season, Boston acquired veteran Jaromir Jagr from the Dallas Stars. Boston finished the lockout-shortened regular season with 62 points, finishing in second place in the Northeast Division, and the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. Throughout the regular season, the Bruins and the Montreal Canadiens were neck-and-neck in the division, but the Bruins lost their last game to the Ottawa Senators, a contest that was postponed until the end of the regular season due to the Boston Marathon bombings. In the first round of the playoffs, Boston rallied from a 4–1 third period deficit in Game 7 to defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs in overtime. The Bruins then eliminated the New York Rangers in five games, and then swept the top seeded Pittsburgh Penguins in the conference finals. 'Chicago Blackhawks' This was the Chicago Blackhawks' twelfth appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals, and they sought their fifth Cup championship overall and their first one since 2010. The Blackhawks began the lockout-shortened regular season by setting the NHL record for most games to start a season without a regulation loss (24). Chicago finally recorded their first regulation loss in their 25th game of the season: a 6–2 defeat to the Colorado Avalanche. The Blackhawks finished the regular season with the best record at 77 points, and won their second Presidents' Trophy in team history, as well as the Central Division championship. In the first round of the playoffs, the Blackhawks defeated the Minnesota Wild in five games. Chicago came from a 3–1 game deficit to defeat the Detroit Red Wings in overtime of Game 7. Then in the conference finals, the Blackhawks defeated the defending 2012 Cup champion Los Angeles Kings in five games. Chicago became the eighth team to win both the Presidents' Trophy and the Stanley Cup in the same season. The series 'Game one' The Blackhawks rallied from a 3–1 third period deficit in Game 1 to defeat the Bruins in triple-overtime, 4–3. This was the 24th longest NHL overtime game, and the fifth longest in the history of the Stanley Cup Finals. Milan Lucic scored at 13:11 of the first period and 00:51 of the second period to give the Bruins a 2–0 lead. At 03:08 of the second period, Chicago rookie Brandon Saad scored his first career playoff goal, ending Boston goalie Tuukka Rask's shutout streak of 149:36 (dating back to the conference finals) and cutting Boston's lead to 2–1. Chicago then had a 5-on-3 for 1:17 midway through the second period, but could not get a shot on goal. The Bruins then increased their lead to 3–1 when Patrice Bergeron scored a power play goal at 06:09 of the third period. But Dave Bolland and Johnny Oduya scored in 4:14 apart to tie the game. In the overtime periods, the Blackhawks were penalized twice for too many men on the ice, but Boston was unable to score on those two ensuing power plays. The game finally ended at 12:08 of the third overtime period when Michal Rozsival's shot from the point deflected off of Bolland, then Andrew Shaw and past Rask into the Boston net. 'Game two' The Bruins tied the series with a 2–1 overtime victory in Game 2. This was the third consecutive overtime game for the Blackhawks (dating back to the conference finals), and the second consecutive Cup Finals in which the first two games went into overtime. In the first period, Chicago had 19 shots on goal compared to Boston's 4, but only scored on Patrick Sharp's goal at 11:22. Seventy seconds later, a goal by the Blackhawks' Marian Hossa was disallowed after officials blew the play dead prior to the puck crossing the Bruins' goal line. Boston's Chris Kelly then scored his first goal of the playoffs at 14:58 of the second period to tie the game. After a scoreless third period, Daniel Paille won the game for the Bruins at 13:48 of overtime; the Blackhawks' Brent Seabrook sent the puck around the end boards in the Chicago zone, but Brandon Bollig could not push it out to centre ice, allowing Adam McQuaid to steal the loose puck and feed it to Tyler Seguin who then passed it to Paille. 'Game three' Boston goalie Tuukka Rask stopped all 28 Chicago shots in the Bruins' 2–0 victory in Game 3. Daniel Paille scored Boston's first goal at 02:13 of the second period. Patrice Bergeron then scored a power play goal at 14:05 of the second period, just seconds after the Bruins' 5-on-3 advantage expired. The Blackhawks' Marian Hossa was scratched from the game; Chicago head coach Joel Quenneville later said after the game that Hossa did not play in the game due to an upper-body injury. 'Game four' Brent Seabrook scored at 09:51 of overtime, from the point through traffic, to give the Blackhawks a 6–5 victory in Game 4 to even the series. After only 12 total goals were scored in the first three games, Game 4 featured a series high 11 total goals. In the first period, Chicago's Michal Handzus scored a short-handed goal at 06:48 before Boston's Rich Peverley tied the game on a power play goal at 14:43. Five total goals were then scored in the second period. Jonathan Toews deflected Michal Rozsival's shot into the Boston net at 6:48 to give the Blackhawks a 2–1 lead. Chicago then scored again at 8:41: Bryan Bickell's shot was stopped by Tuukka Rask, but Patrick Kane grabbed the rebound from the other side and shot it into the net before the Boston goalie could recover. Milan Lucic cut the lead, 3–2, at 14:43 after shooting a rebound past Chicago goalie Corey Crawford, but Chicago scored right back at 15:32 with Marcus Kruger's goal on a 2-on-1 breakaway. At 17:22, the Bruins scored their second power play goal after Zdeno Chara shot deflected over the net, hit the glass, then eventually bounced into the crease where Patrice Bergeron tapped it into the net before Crawford could find the puck. In the third period, Bergeron tied the game, 4–4, at 2:05. The Blackhawks then scored their first power play goal of the series with Patrick Sharp's score at 11:19, but Boston answered 55 seconds later with Johnny Boychuk's equalizer. All five Bruins goals were shot to the glove side of Crawford, but the Blackhawks never once trailed in this game. 'Game five' Patrick Kane scored two goals in the Blackhawks' 3–1 victory in Game 5. Chicago built a 2–0 lead with Kane's goals at 17:27 of the first period and 05:13 of the second. Boston's Zdeno Chara cut the score to 2–1 at 03:40 of the third period, but Chicago goalie Corey Crawford stopped 24 of 25 Bruins shots and Dave Bolland added an empty net goal in the waning seconds of the game. Boston's Patrice Bergeron left the game in the second period and was later taken to the hospital for observation, while Chicago's Jonathan Toews suffered an upper body injury and did not play in the third period. 'Game six' With Chicago holding a 3–2 series lead heading into Game 6, the desperate Bruins outshot the Blackhawks 12–6 in the first period, with the Bruins ending the period up 1–0 due to Chris Kelly's goal. However, Chicago would fight back in the second period as Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews scored on a breakaway while shorthanded to tie the game (Toews' goal would be recorded as an even strength goal, as it entered the net just after Andrew Shaw's penalty expired). The teams entered the third period with the game tied 1–1. However, Milan Lucic would score at 12:11 of the third period to put the Bruins in front again. With the Bruins clinging onto a 2–1 lead late in the third period, the Blackhawks pulled goalie Corey Crawford for the extra attacker. This resulted in Bryan Bickell scoring the game-tying goal with 76 seconds remaining in the game on feed from Jonathan Toews. Thus, with the score tied 2–2, it appeared the Finals would go to overtime for the fourth time. However, only 17 seconds after Bickell's goal, Dave Bolland scored what proved to be the series-winning goal, as the Bruins were unable to get an equalizer in the final minute with goalie Tuukka Rask on the bench. Bolland's goal at 19:01 of the third period broke the record for the latest Stanley Cup game-winner scored in regulation. Series quotes *"Striding ahead for it is Toews! Staggering on! Toews pushed it wide! Two seconds and one! THE BLACKHAWKS ARE STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONS!" —Mike Emrick (the final call made on NBC) *"Ladies and gentlemen, the Chicago Blackhawks have won the Stanley Cup! They've won the Stanley Cup! For the second time in four seasons, the Chicago Blackhawks have won the Stanley Cup!"—John Wiedeman (the final call made on WGN-AM) Rosters 'Boston Bruins' 'Chicago Blackhawks' Television In Canada, the series was televised in English on CBC and in French on the cable network RDS. The NBC Sports Group's coverage in the United States was different than previous seasons: the NBC broadcast network televised Game 1 and then the final four games, while the NBC Sports Network broadcast Games 2 and 3. Chicago Blackhawks (2013 Stanley Cup champions) The 2013 Stanley Cup was presented to the Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman following the Blackhawks' 3–2 win over the Bruins in the sixth game of the finals. Defensemen *2 Duncan Keith (A) *4 Niklas Hjalmarsson *7 Brent Seabrook *8 Nick Leddy *17 Sheldon Brookbank *27 Johnny Oduya *32 Michal Rozsival Wingers *10 Patrick Sharp (A) *13 Daniel Carcillo *20 Brandon Saad *22 Jamal Mayers *25 Viktor Stalberg *28 Ben Smith *29 Bryan Bickell *52 Brandon Bollig *65 Andrew Shaw *67 Michael Frolik *81 Marian Hossa *88 Patrick Kane Centers *16 Marcus Kruger *19 Jonathan Toews © *26 Michal Handzus *36 Dave Bolland Goaltenders ('played both center & wing) *50 Corey Crawford *30 Ray Emery ;Coaching and Administrative Staff:'' *Rocky Wirtz (Owner/Chairman/Governor), John McDonough (President/Chief Executive Officer/Alt. Governor), Jay Blunk (Executive Vice President) *Stan Bowman (General Manager), Al MacIsaac (Vice President Hockey Operations/Asst. to President), Norm Maciver (Assistant General Manager), William Scotty Bowman (Senior Adviser, Hockey Operations) *Joel Quenneville (Head Coach), Mike Kitchen (Assistant Coach), Jamie Kompon (Assistant Coach) *Stephane Waite (Goaltending Coach), Mike Gapskie (Athletic Trainer), Troy Parchman (Equipment Manager), Jeff Thomas (Asst. Athletic Trainer) *Clint Reif (Asst. Equipment Manager), Pawel Prylinski (Message Therapist), Jim Heintzelman (Equipment Asst.) *Paul Goodman (Strength & Conditioning Coach), Tim Campbell (Video Coach), Pierre Gauthier (Director, Player Personnel) *Mark Kelley (Director, Amateur Scouting), Barry Smith (Director, Player Development), Ryan Stewart (Director, Pro Scouting), Ron Anderson (Director, Player Recruitment) *Tony Ommen (Senior Director, Team Services), Mark Bernard (General Manager, Minor League Affiliation), Dr. Michael Terry (Head Team Physician) ;Engraving notes'':'' *For the shortened 2012-13 season, the NHL's 40-game regular season games played (or 1 Stanley Cup Finals game played) requirement for automatic inclusion on the Stanley Cup was pro-rated to 23 regular season games played, or 1 Finals game played (or dressed as the backup goaltender). As such, four players who did not play every game in the Finals automatically qualified to be on the Cup. **Ben Smith: 1 regular season game and 1 Stanley Cup Finals game (spending the rest of the regular season in the minors with the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL) **Sheldon Brookbank: 26 regular-season games and 1 playoff game (none in the Stanley Cup Finals) **Daniel Carcillo: 23 regular-season games and 4 playoff games (none in the Stanley Cup Finals) **Ray Emery: 21 regular season games, dressed as the backup goaltender for 25 other regular-season games and all six Stanley Cup Finals games *Jamal Mayers played in 19 regular season games and none in the playoffs, but was on the roster all season (as a healthy reserve). His name was engraved due to a successful petition. *Jamie Kompson became first assistant Coach to win back to back cups with different teams 2012 with Los Angeles, and 2013 with Chicago. * Scotty Bowman moved into 2nd place with his 13th Stanley Cup championship. He became the first person to win multiple Stanley Cups with 4 teams. Montreal 1973-76-77-78-79, Pittsburgh 1991-92, Detroit 1997-98-2002-08, Chicago 2010-2013. Scotty Bowman also lost in the Finals 4 times St. Louis 1968-69-70 (General Manager/Coach) - 1st of 5 teams in the finals), Detroit 1995 (Head Coach/Director of Player Personnel). '''Left off the Stanley Cup. *Carter Hutton: played 1 regular season. He was dressed for last 2 regular season games and the first 5 playoff games, due to Ray Emery being injured, but did not dress as the backup goalie in the Stanley Cup Finals. His name was left off the Stanley Cup, and team picture. Hutton did not qualify for engravement, because he spent most of the season in the minors playing 51 games for Rockford IceHogs and did not dress in the Stanley Cup Finals. Category:Stanley Cup Finals Category:Stanley Cup Category:Chicago Blackhawks Category:Boston Bruins